Card terminals are used at merchant sites for processing credit card transactions. To make a credit card payment, a customer's credit card is “swiped” through the card terminal in order to read a magnetic stripe on the card, and an amount of the transaction is manually keyed into the card terminal. The card terminal dials up a server and, using the encoded information from the magnetic stripe along with the entered amount, requests authorization for the transaction. The server may contact other entities, such as a card issuer, and perform processing to determine whether to authorize or deny the requested transaction. If authorized, the server transmits an authorization code back to the card terminal, which indicates approval of the transaction. The card terminal prints a receipt, which the customer can sign to complete the transaction. Certain types of card terminals can alternatively capture an electronic signature of the customer.
Card terminals are programmed by each individual merchant. For example, the card terminal is programmed to print the name and address of the merchant on the receipt. For certain types of merchants, such as restaurants, the card terminal can be programmed to print lines on the receipt for the customer to enter a tip amount and a total amount for the transaction. Also, card terminals can be programmed to print various other messages on the receipts. In addition to options involving the receipts, card terminals can be programmed to configure other options as well.
In order to program a card terminal, a merchant must be physically proximate the card terminal in order to program the options. The programming can also require particular technical knowledge or skill concerning the card terminals in order to know how to program them. A merchant may thus be less likely to frequently change configuration options for card terminals and does not necessarily have an easy way to make such changes.
Also, merchants can be provided with reports concerning transactions at their card terminals. However, the reports represent past activity and thus do not provide an indication of activity across card terminals proximate the time when they occur. The reports are not necessarily easily or widely accessible either, potentially lessening the value of them.
Accordingly, what is needed are easier ways to program card terminals and more versatility in providing information concerning transactions at card terminals.